Every day is an adventure

June 14, 2009

Running For Two - Matty Siravo 5K and Matty's Mighty Dash

The boys and I did this race last year, and had so much fun, I couldn't wait to do it again this year. Last year I won first place in my age group, but obviously, I wasn't expecting anything like that this year. My average running pace has dropped from just over 8-minute miles to just over 9-minute miles. I knew I'd probably run a tad faster in the race, given that it was a 5K, but figured I'd be right around a 9:00 pace, finishing in about 28 minutes - a good 5 minutes slower than my typical 5K time.

And believe me, I am FINE with that. I have watched my pace increase and my weekly mileage decrease over the past few weeks, and it doesn't bother me in the least bit, because, um, there are more important things to think about right now. I'm just happy that I can get out and run a few times a week.

It was a beautiful day for a race, and we met up with some friends when we got there, and got the kids their t-shirts, and I got my race number. Soon enough, the kids were lining up. Their race is only a 50-yard dash, so it doesn't last long, but they love every second of it. Well, Gabe did, anyway. Dante started running, but then freaked out and stopped, and I had to run the end of the race with him. Not sure what that was all about, since he did fine running by himself last year, but I didn't make a big deal out of it.

They got their medals, and then both proceeded to have a complete meltdown, whining about how they wanted popcorn and they wanted this and that, and throwing themselves on the ground. They were both really tired, and probably just overexcited.

We finally got them to sit down and eat a snack and have a drink, and then they joined their friends and got some free ice cream and popcorn. Nothing like starting the day with ice cream and popcorn - breakfast of champions.

I made my way over to the 5K start, and lined up near the middle of the pack, and we started off. This is pretty much the flattest 5K you can run around here, and it was cloudy and just a little warm, so I felt great starting off, and finished the first two miles at 8:49 and 8:51. I was not running hard at all, and focused on maintaining an easy pace, and was just really having fun. Several times I thought to myself how nice it was to truly treat a 5K as just a 'fun run,' and not be pushing myself to the point of exhaustion.

I even stopped at the water stops - there were two of them - and walked while I drank my water. I don't know that I've ever stopped for water during a 5K in my life! It was definitely a very different experience for me. During the third mile, the sun started to come out from behind the clouds, and it started to feel much warmer, so I slowed down quite a bit for that last mile - 9:12. I didn't want to risk getting overheated, and I definitely did not want to push myself too much.

When I came around the final corner, I saw that the clock was ticking very close to the 28-minute mark, and for a very brief moment I thought about sprinting to the finish and trying to break 28 minutes, but then I thought - what for? Who cares? So, instead, I slowed down to give the boys high-fives and cruised into the chute at 28:05, feeling just slightly winded, but mostly fantastic.

This wasn't really my first race with baby on board, since I was technically pregnant when I ran the half-marathon in Providence in May (I found out that I was pregnant the next day, and boy was I surprised!). But this was my first 5K while "running for two," and it was really, really fun. It was nice to not feel so much pressure to finish in a certain time, and to not be watching my Garmin constantly, or trying to calculate how much I needed to pick up the pace to meet my goal.

Don't get me wrong - I love the competition and the challenge, and I love meeting and/or exceeding my goals, and setting PRs, and winning age-group awards. But my priorities have shifted, and it was great to just run and enjoy myself for a change, with no other concerns at all. And as it turns out, I ended up coming in 5th in my age group - not too shabby for being 10 weeks pregnant!

And of course it was great to have the boys involved, too. This race will absolutely be an annual tradition for our family : )

In the afternoon we took the boys to a birthday party, and had a great time chatting with friends while the boys played outside with their friends. And when we got home last night, I realized that they boys had ice cream and popcorn for breakfast, and Cheetos and cake for dinner. There was pizza at the party, but neither of them ate any. We really do feed them healthy food most of the time, though, so I'm not going to stress about one fun, celebratory day full of unhealthy food.

My hip felt great during and after the race yesterday, so I decided to head out for a semi-longish run today. It was cloudy when I got up, but looked like the rain would hold off - but it didn't. The second I stepped out the door, it started raining, and never stopped. And during the last mile of my 6.5 miles, it started absolutely pouring. It was great. I was running along the bike path, getting even more drenched than I already was, and I was almost laughing out loud. It was raining so hard, the water was dripping off the brim of my baseball cap. It was all just so ridiculous. I love running in the rain. Hip is a bit sore now, though, so I think I'll take a couple days off and do some swimming and weights before running again.

After lunch we went to their final swim class, and Scott took the boys out for a while this afternoon so I could rest. He's been doing that as often as possible lately, and it's so helpful. I don't know what I'd do without him.

This week is our first full week of summer vacation. Thankfully, the weather forecast looks at least a little better than last week's. We'll have some rain, but not a solid week of gray, rainy days, so at least we'll be able to get outside a bit. Don't know if it'll be quite warm enough for the beach yet, but maybe we'll just wear sweatshirts and brave it anyway.

I think it's going to take us a week or two to get used to the lack of routine, but once we do get used to it, I know it's going to be a beautiful thing.